Best AT&T prepaid phones

Going prepaid with AT&T and in need of a phone? Check out our favorites.

Sure, you could pick up a prepaid phone straight from AT&T, but if you'll always have more choice by bringing your own unlocked device. That's why we've rounded up the best phones you can buy outright to use unlocked on the carrier.

Samsung Galaxy S7 and S7 edge

A popular pick (and rightfully so) is the Samsung Galaxy S7 or S7 edge. All that was awesome about the Galaxy S6 has been enhanced and Samsung keeps giving the people what they want.

The battery life in the Galaxy S7 and S7 edge has been improved and extended considerably; in other words, bring on your busiest day and it will keep up with you. If your day involves rain or possible puddle or pool encounters, worry not; the Galaxy S7 and S7 edge are waterproof. Take that, Mother Nature. The fingerprint sensor is conveniently tucked into the Home button and works like such a charm you'll wonder how you've gone without one until now.

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If you love photography with your Android phone, these are the phones you need to get your hands on. Photos turn out fabulously in just about any light and the Quad HD SuperAMOLED display on both phones keeps your pictures and streaming videos looking clear and sharp.

LG G5

For something completely different, have a look at the LG G5. The modular design is a new direction for LG and it makes the phone a unique offering in the world of Android.

You want a great camera? LG's got a great camera – three, in fact. Of course, you have your front-facing camera for those necessary selfies, but you also get two rear-facing cameras: a 16-megapixel main camera (same as the G4) and an 8-megapixel wide-angle camera. The fingerprint sensor is built into the power button on the back of the phone and it boasts impressive accuracy.

The Snapdragon 820 processor will keep you happily multitasking all day and the 5.3-inch Quad HD quantum display keeps your video streaming and app gaming in top form. The feel isn't as premium as the Galaxy S7 series, but that's what you'll trade for the G5's modular capabilities. The "Friends" ecosystem of add-ons includes items like camera modules that attach to the phone when you remove the base.

Nexus 6P

The latest Nexus phone has lived up to all the hype, and a long-awaited and well-executed phone from Google could be right up your alley — even as we enter the latter half of the year. You can't buy the Nexus 6P from a carrier, but you purchase it unlocked and bring it to AT&T.

The camera holds up well next to many current Android phones, offering 8 megapixels for the front-facing camera and 12.3 megapixels for the rear-facing one. It works in bright outdoor light or shadowy indoor environments and features laser-assisted autofocus for accurate focusing in the dark.

The 5.7-inch display and aluminum body look and feel modern, industrial, and comfortable in your hands. The fingerprint sensor uses Nexus Imprint and is located on the back of the phone, which is a departure from the way some manufacturers have been doing it, but 6P owners tend to like this feature having its own space away from the home screen or bezels. The nippy 810 Snapdragon processor and strong battery life round out the reasons the Nexus 6P is a good buy.

There's more to learn. Check out our review of the Nexus 6P to see what we have to say.

HTC 10

HTC is back in a big way with the HTC 10, an outstanding 2016 flagship phone for the company that's been a little quiet lately. Although it's not offered directly from AT&T, the unlocked HTC 10 is compatible with the network and can be purchased from another retailer.

Crazy about music? Say no more: the HTC 10 features BoomSound Hi-Fi that's going to make all of your music sound stellar. The front-facing tweeter and bottom-facing woofer give you more volume than you could possibly need (with some help from Dolby, no less), and there's a dedicated amp in the headphone jack so that you can rock out in crystal clarity. The capacitive fingerprint scanner doubles as the home key; the set up for scanning is straightforward, easy, and secure.

The HTC 10 comes with either 32GB or 64GB of storage that can be expanded upon with a microSD card, which can be used as adoptable storage, so you'll never run out of space for photos or music. The 5.2-inch Quad HD display can be a little hard to see in bright sunlight, but the 10 makes up for this in other areas.

LG Nexus 5X

For a solid mid-range phone, look no further than the LG Nexus 5X. You'll need to purchase it unlocked from another retailer and opt for the bring-your-own-device prepaid plan.

A smaller and lighter offering compared to other phones, the 5.2-inch display is clear and covered with Corning Gorilla Glass 3 and fingerprint-resistant oleophobic coating. The Snapdragon 808 Processor and dependable battery give you a full day of work and play without much to worry about in terms of bogging down the phone or searching for an outlet to charge up at. The phone is available in 16GB or 32GB, and for the price, you'll be better investing in the 32GB model.

The camera is one of the phone's best features, offering a 12.3-megapixel sensor for excellent color and detail capture. The phone also features Nexus Imprint fingerprint scanning, which sets up easily with six simple presses to the sensor.

iPhone 6s and iPhone 6s Plus

Yes, this is Android Central, but no, we're not going to leave the iPhone off of the list when we're talking about the best phones to use on AT&T. They have much to offer and are worth considering.

The iPhone 6s has a 4.7-inch Retina HD display and the iPhone 6s Plus tops out at 5.5 inches. Shutterbugs will rejoice at the 12 megapixel camera for still photos and the 4K video capabilities, and they can bring those still shots to life with the Live Photos feature, which animates an image using a second and a half before and after the image was taken. 3D Touch sensors also recognize the pressure your fingertips put on the screen to easily open apps or preview content.

Touch ID keeps your iPhone secure and the storage capacity ranges from the standard 16GB up to as much as 128GB. Not too shabby, iPhone.

Really, Android Central? Seriously? The title of this article is disgustingly misleading. These are NOT pre-paid phones, nor are they the "best AT&T pre-paid phones" at all. These are straight-up, unlocked phones that also happen to work on AT&T and a number of other carriers. You should just title this "best unlocked phones for AT&T" and it would be fine. I clicked this article thinking "oh cool, they looked at the cheapy, low end phones AT&T offers" and found this garbage. Slow news day? This is just pathetic.

That's true, but prepaid does not mean unlocked. That's why it says "AT&T Prepaid Phones," not unlocked. Incidentally, Best Buy is selling the Galaxy S6 unlocked, but you'd be crazy to spend $500 on a year-old phone.

Except that the very first sentence says it's better not to buy prepaid direct from AT&T, but rather buy your own unlocked device for more choice - and *then* links to the locked, full retail S7/S7 Edge from AT&T post-paid. And the S7 is $694 plus tax from AT&T, Edge $794 plus tax. $500 for a year old phone doesn't seem any less reasonable than $700 and $800 for brand new ones.

Could someone please explain to me why I'm receiving email notifications about random replies to this article? I'm not "following" it, I haven't commented on it, and as far as I know I'd never ever seen it until I got an email notification telling me there was a new comment on it?? This is probably the 5th time this has happened in the last couple weeks too... random articles I've never seen before sending me email notifications about new comments.... ?!?

And that's why a lead off with the samsung J phones which are a very good choice foe prepaid, as far as the iPhone se which is 400 and 500 no thanks. There's youtube of the lil j3 whipping the pants off the iph 5s for a lot cheaper and the j7 is a 5.5 in phone for $150

I'm sorry AC/MN but this is ridiculous. The first sentence alone does a complete 180 on the title, and then the article does a 180 on that first sentence...

"Best AT&T prepaid phones... oh wait, you should bring your own unlocked phones instead. Ok, here are some of the most expensive ones in existence. By the way, 4 out of 7 of these recommendations/links aren't actually unlocked, but are sold direct through AT&T post-paid, who charges more than any other carrier for full retail pricing. Oh you'll also have to submit a request to AT&T if you actually want those 4 to be unlocked after you purchase them. But it's a good thing you didn't buy the cheaper prepaid devices direct from AT&T!"

...That's basically what this article does. In the process, you guys get some SEO revenue from all the review links and linksynergy/affiliate links to AT&T. Meanwhile, we're left with misinformation while you make money off of our click to this page.

I'm sure this will fall on deaf ears, but please don't stoop this low AC. SEO is one thing. This is downright deceptive. Anybody doing a search for the best AT&T prepaid devices is going to be completely misled by this article.

Funny story about my own S7 Edge: The display failed and began flickering. Took it to the store, who sent me to the service department, who told me it had to be called in for warranty replacement.

Customer support had me remove the SIM card tray and look inside at the water detection tab to see if it had been water damaged. I have the new phone now, but I thought it was funny that they show it being put in fish tanks, but support checks to see if it got water damage.

You know, I thought this was going to be an article on the best prepaid phones from AT&T. I was not expecting it to be an article on phones you COULD use on pre-paid. However, my heart skipped a beat when I saw the HTC 10 because I thought AT&T has started carrying it. Sad face.

This is a fantastic article. I saw the title and before I clicked on it I immediately thought "The *best* phones for AT&T prepaid? well duh, of course depending on one's taste, it's going to be one of the flagships!", while thinking there is no way the article is going to say that and list some crappy GoPhones. Well I clicked on the article and found that the article is saying exactly what it's supposed to say. Well played, Christine. Well played.

Most prepaid users are looking to save some money. What this article says is, sure you can save some money on service but you still need to spend hundreds of dollars for a good experience using it. That's totally unfair and BS, there are some really fine phones available for reasonable pricing. It's ok to suggest a couple higher end devices for power users but get in the program and actually get some hands on with the actual prepaid devices, your readers will respect you more for it. I recently sold a premium device and picked up an LG Phoenix 2. The screen is a pain in outdoor conditions but a simple swipe of the finger brightens it up sufficiently, it's not a high end device but so far it runs buttery smooth and with a 5" screen it's still pocketable and easy to manage with one hand, it has 16GB on board storage, 1.5gb ram and my 64GB sd card works fine in it. Best part is I got it at BestBuy on sale for $79. (reg $99) which in my book makes it a great deal.